The Pitfalls of Airsitting
by Lyra Kamiya
Summary: From the prompt: "Ikki and Jinora hatch a plan to lock Korra and Mako together in a closet... except things go awry and Bolin ends up falling for the trap instead." The airbabies try to take everyone else's romantic lives into their own hands.


**A/N: **This story is not written entirely because I love the airbending kids, but it is _mostly_ written because of that.

I'd like to thank justanothrephoenix on tumblr for giving me the prompt that lead to this story. I'd also like to apologize to her because this is not, remotely, the smut she was looking for when she requested I "accidentally" lock Korra and Bolin in a closet together. I will need to write that for her at some point, as tribute.

I also apologize to my pokemon-fic fans for how badly I've been neglecting them. I'm sorry and I promise I haven't abandoned those stories.

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**The Pitfalls of Airsitting** – Chapter 1: Matchmakers  
_Lyra Kamiya/Lyraeon_

Ikki and Jinora each had their own unique style of hopeless romanticism. Jinora stole from her mother's oft-risque book collection on a regular basis, and now had a rather sensual understanding of what love was meant to be for a girl of 11. Her little sister on the other hand - in part because Jinora had intentionally protected her from the same content that had shaped her own mind – was all bubbles and sparkles and rainbows. She still believed that owldoves sang when true lovers locked eyes for the first time, and still got grossed out when she saw her parents kiss for more than half a second.

Both knew a cute guy when they saw them, though, and from the moment they'd heard about the Fire Ferret brothers, let alone the glorious moment Mako had first visited Air Temple Island, they'd been smitten, both with the boy himself and with the idea of Korra being with him. Meeting his little brother had just been icing on the cake. While Ikki had spouted that she wasn't sure who Korra should choose, Jinora had calmly and secretly decided that compared to their parents' 16 years, she and Bolin were quite close in age. As soon as Tenzin would let her date, she was going to be all over "those dreamy pecs and pouty lips".

Korra had been at least a little alarmed over that last bit when Jinora had confessed it one night. But, she'd been on a date with Bolin herself and knew firsthand what a sweetheart he was, so she eventually decided that this fixation was probably one of the girl's healthier ones.

The first week since everyone had moved to the island had been an emotional mess for everyone involved - Asami most of all, of course, but Tenzin came in a close second due to suddenly having his brood effectively doubled. Fortunately for Asami, Pema was more than happy to have another non-bender in the house to dote upon, and cheering people up was right below scheming on the list of things the airbender girls were good at.

Unfortunately for her (and everyone else, really), scheming still was higher on the list, and matchmaking was amongst their interests that they, in fact, had absolutely no skill nor business in.

"Why do you like Mako so much?" Ikki asked, tying a small ribbon into Asami's hair. Ikki still liked Korra better, but Asami had gained a lot of points simply for being willing to let her braid her hair.

"I never really thought about it," Asami admitted with a laugh. "When I asked him out, it was just to make up for hitting him with my bike. I didn't really expect it to go anywhere from there. But I guess he's just too sweet not too like. Of course, it doesn't hurt that he's handsome."

"They're both really dreamy," Jinora agreed, carefully cutting a flower's stem with a thin blade of air. She had taken up the ancient flower-arranging practice of ikebana, after reading a novel about the romance between a concubine who practiced it and the gardener who snuck her flowers from the fire lord's private garden. That she was actually good at the art was no surprise to anyone, as she had the patience and eye for detail required, and her father had set aside a small garden patch for her to foster her interest with, in some small, transparent hope she'd grow to like it better than her mother's smut collection.

Perhaps because she was more used to the hard angles and industrial smell of cars, Asami had found herself oddly enamored with the natural beauty of Jinora's creations, and would watch her most afternoons while Ikki talked at them both.

"Yeah, Bolin's not too bad either," Asami chuckled. She didn't know about the girl's reading material, but she had grown to suspect she'd gotten a girlish crush on the earthbender. Before she could think of a good quip to tease her with, Ikki piped up again.

"You guys kiss too much, it's gross."

Asami laughed. "Is it now?"

"Yeah. It's gross and also it means you might get pregnant. And I don't want you to get pregnant because then you'll be cranky like mommy."

She had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing any harder at the young girl's misconceptions, even though the suggestion made her blush slightly as well. She looked over at Jinora, expecting to see her amusement mirrored, but the oldest airbender just looked disappointed, with one eyebrow raised in slight frustration. "Don't worry. I'm only 18, I'm not going to have babies for a while."

"I think you should have babies with Bolin instead."

"What?"

Jinora looked up a little too quickly, snapping another flower's stem as she had the same reaction. "Yeah, _what_?"

"Noooo I mean it. I mean Mako's reaaaally really really really handsome but if you had a girl with your hair and Bolin's eyes she would be the prettiest most beautifulist girl in the whole wide world. They'd probably make her a princess just for being so pretty. And besides Mako wouldn't be a good dad, he's all rules and serious and daddies should be fun like Bolin and say goofy things and throw you up in the air with their bending instead of just enforcing the rules and making sure you practice and eat all your vegetables and that's the stuff mommies should do instead and you're so pretty your kids will always listen to you anyway so you don't need a grumpy daddy to be so rules-y."

Asami turned over the course of Ikki's rant to gawk openly at the child, who had stopped braiding so she could gesture her way through impressions of her father. Her ramblings were often confusing and nonsensical, but this one stepped over enough lines that "she's eight" wasn't a good enough excuse.

"Where did all that come from?" she finally asked, trying to keep her temper steady.

"But you _are _really really really pretty."

She gave an exasperated sigh, shaking her head. "No, Ikki. I meant, why do you think I should be with Bolin all of a sudden?"

Ikki scoffed, as though the answer should be blindingly obvious. "Well it's just because you should break up with Mako." By the time she looked up and saw her older sister wildly motioning "no!" the words had already escaped her mouth.

Jinora's face sunk into her hand in dismay at her sister's naive admission.

"Break up with him? You... you two are impossible." Asami stood up, pulling her fingers through the last half-complete braid to undo it as she stormed into the hall. "I am so glad I'm an only child..."

The girls' eyes locked when the door slammed shut, and Jinora had Ikki by the wrist before she could finish forming an air scooter to escape on.

"Why did you say that?"

"I'm sorry!"

"Why did you say that!"

"I said I'm sorry!" she wailed, pulling at her arm with the other. "Let goooo!"

"No! You just messed everything up, and now we have to come up with a new plan!"

"Okay, okay, we'll come up with a new plannn! Just let goooo!"

Jinora let go of her little sister's arm, but didn't stop scowling. Ikki whimpered a little, rubbing her wrist, but quieted as soon as she realized she was uninjured. "...You're a meanie," she declared anyway, crossing her arms.

"And you can't keep your mouth shut. How could you _possibly_ say she should be with Bolin? _I'm_ supposed to be with Bolin."

"I'm sorry oka-"

Ikki's arms fell back down, and a grin grew across her face.

"You want to be with Bolin?"

Jinora sighed heavily as she realized her own mistake.

"You like Bolin?" Ikki's grin broke into a giggle instead. "You like him! You like Boliiiin," she sang, spinning on the spot and making a small swirl of air.

"Okay, yes. I do. Now can we please just-"

"Jinora's in looove, Jinora's in looooove," Ikki chorused, hopping into an air scooter and making laps around the room.

Jinora gritted her teeth and hung her head, muttering her disbelief that she was the one her father was worried about being a difficult teen, not her sister. "Okay already, let's just make a plan!"


End file.
